Between Discourse and Schema: Reformulating a Cultural‐Historical Approach to Culture and Mind

Abstract

Vygotsky and the Russian cultural‐historical school offer an alternative psychology well suited to anthropological studies of culture and mind. This is the case even though their 1920s understanding of “culture” needs reformulation. Here we argue strongly for the school's recognition of mediation through cultural artifact as the foundation of human mental and emotional activity. At the same time we begin to rework a more contemporary notion of culture, using both discourse and schema theory to flesh out a novel concept of cultural artifact. We suggest that the outcome of this reworking also provides a bridge between these two, seemingly exclusive approaches to the study of cultural forms.